Have you considered the view from the top as you climb Mountains? I spent 5 years in college studying engineering…Oops, 30 days into my first job as an engineer, by simple observation of people with 20 years in that career; I realized I had just climbed one wrong mountain. After 15 years jockeying for positions in corporate America, working on company goals, climbing with self-discipline, persistence, no quit attitude, loyalty, hard work and all the necessary components to win, they closed the division I worked at. I learned that it was not smart to climb someone else’s mountain!

Now that I am older and wiser, I apply a simple, yet extremely powerful, principle to make sure I am not wasting valuable years of my life climbing wrong, or unnecessary, mountains…

“Visualize the view from the top BEFORE you decide to climb”

I never had the common sense to observe the lifestyles of engineers. I just signed up to school because I was interested in understanding how things worked. I took off like a runaway horse. Climbing and beating down obstacles as best as I could. No challenge was big enough because I was just obstinate in finishing that race. Once I got a JOB, I pretty much took off again. Never did I ask:

If I become the best at my profession, what does the view from the top look like? Does the view really excite me? Is it worth pursuing with all my strength? Is the goal aligned with my highest values? and will the path help me develop my God given gifts and abilities?Had I visualized the view from the top, I would have made very different choices. Here is why? One of my highest values is freedom. Had I visualized the view from the top of a fortune 100 company, I would have changed paths A LOT SOONER. Those poor souls who make it to the top make a lot of money but have no freedom!

Does it mean that no one should climb the corporate ladder? Not really, it only means that most people never assess what awaits them at the top. If they did, they would likely change paths to align them with what they really want and value. Take Real Estate professionals as another example. I built a Real Estate operation to about $25 Million Dollars. It was not until the Real Estate catastrophe in 2008 that I stopped to ask the question: What if I fight this battle and survive, out of pure will, the next 10 or 20 years until there is another boom? What if I win? I quickly realized there were much more rewarding mountains to climb where the view from the top was much more exciting and rewarding and aligned with my gifts and highest values. The New Year is coming. This is the perfect time to stop and ask:If I persevere, beat the odds, tear down the obstacles, sacrifice and win, WHAT DOES THE VIEW FROM THE TOP LOOK LIKE?

If the answer does not get you excited, then STOP climbing that mountain! Sometimes progress means turning around and starting on a new path of your choice.If this message makes sense, and you want to maximize the results of your efforts, you may want to consider joining the Creating the WorldClassYOU program to make sure you are choosing, and getting equipped, to climb the right mountains.